The principal objective of the Perinatal Clinical Research Center is to develop research programs which investigate the physiology and the biochemistry of the pregnant woman, fetus, and newborn in normal conditions and diseases. The Departments of Obstetrics and Bioengineering are interested in developing new instrumentation to monitor the fetus and the mother and to study systems to gather data and to interpret them easily. The Department of Pediatrics tends to continue its investigations of the metabolism of the fetus and newborn especially with reference to carbohydrates, lipids, and hormones. The Department of Reproductive Biology investigates the metabolism of steroids in pregnant women especially the productive rate of progesterone, its precursors and metabolites. The Department of Pediatrics and the Department of Bioengineering plan to study the physiology of the newborn, especially the cardiovascular and pulmonary cardiovascular systems. Other programs are concerned with red cells in the pregnant woman, structure of polysaccharides in the placenta at various periods of development, and the pharmacology of anesthesia. The Departments of Medicine, Anesthesia, and Physiology participate in these endeavors. An additional objective of the Perinatal Clinical Research Center is to continue to provide research training for obstetric and pediatric personnel, to assure optimum circumstances for the careful observation and study of the mother and infant, and to give ideal medical and nursing care, antepartum, intrapartum and postpartum.